UGH. I lost my huge post to the big blogger in the sky (or, as I like to put it, God's way of editing down the size of my posts). I'm going to have to give a condensed version of that (now lost) post with all my picks for the week.
In the Patriot League:
Duquesne at Fordham. Can Duquesne make it 3-0 versus the Patriot League (after beating Holy Cross and Georgetown)? Three times is not the charm. Fordham 20, Duquesne 14.
Georgetown at Colgate. Hoyas keep it surprisingly close, but Raiders ultimately win. Colgate 24, G'town 16.
Lafayette at Richmond. A shocker, with Richmond letting down and Lafayette bouncing back, but Richmond still pulls it out. Richmond 23, Lafayette 22.
Columbia at Bucknell. A close defensive game that Bucknell pulls out. Bucknell 17, Columbia 14.
In the Top 25:
UNH at Dartmouth. Shocker of the week. I don't think UNH will be able to keep up with Dartmouth's passing attack. Big Green outduels an exposed UNH in pass-happy game. Dartmouth 44, UNH 34.
James Madison at 1-A West Virgina. Memo to A-10: Rutgers and Mississippi St. are not national championship contenders. West Virginia is. WVa 63, JMU 9.
Furman at 1-A Pittsburgh. Furman keeps them close for 3 quarters, but Pitt pulls away in the end.. as long as they hold onto the ball. Pitt 31, Furman 21.
Delaware at UMass. A classic "battle of the desperate teams", UMass has more to lose by going 0-2 in divisional play than Delware does by losing to 2 ranked teams in September. That, and the fact that they have their new coach finally on the sideline, and they're at home. UMass 21, Delaware 20.
Montana St. at 1-A Colorado St. Tempting to take the upset, but the Bobcats haven't proven they can score points consistently. CSU 28, MSU 7.
Northern Colorado at Montana. NCU has played Maine, Idaho St., and now Montana in consecutive weeks. Picture that trio of games in November instead of Spetember! Montana looks for someone to pound after losing to Sam Houston St. last week, and NCU fits the bill. Montana 34, NCU 0.
Hampton at Morgan St. (in E. Rutherford, NJ). The Urban League Classic now features #20 ranked Hampton playing Morgan St. Can Morgan St. keep it close? I'll do one better and predict a Morgan St. victory. Hampton was helped immensely by 7 turnovers in their win against ranked Western Illinois last week, and I think the Pirates lose in a shootout. Morgan St. 45, Hampton 34.
Appalachian St. at Northwestern St. A battle that could mean an at-large playoff invite for the winner down the road. Both teams have great defenses. I thing NW St. gets one more turnover, and win the game at home. NW St. 13, App. St. 6.
Northeastern at Towson. I don't see this one being competitive under the lights in Baltimore. N'Eastern 35, Towson 3.
Sam Houston St. at SE Louisiana. I predict over 800 yards of passing for these gunning teams, and I predict SE Louisiana will capture their second scalp over a ranked opponent this year at home. SE Louisiana 41, Sam Houston St. 32.
Villanova at Penn. Most experts call this a laugher in favor of Villanova. Oh, how wrong they are. Penn will painfully make this clear tonight. Penn 24, Villanova 3.
Southern Utah at Stephen F. Austin. This game would be interesting in different circumstances, but with SUU playing their thrid straight tough road game, I don't see it today. SFA 31, SUU 14.
McNeese St. at Portland St. Another hunch: Portland St.'s balanced attack will cause McNeese St.'s defense problems, as they pull off an "upset". PSU 27, McNeese St. 14.
Final notes:
* On CN8 today there is a real feast of 1-AA football in the NJ/Philadelphia area, with Delaware/UMass at 1PM and Villanova/Penn at 6PM. If you have picture-in-picture, you can also put the Penn St./Wisconsin game on too - in the *smaller* screen, of course.
* It's a shame the Western Kentucky/Florida International (1-A) game was postponed due to the impending hurrincane (again) in Florida. It would have certainly been another 1-AA win over a 1-A. (Fat chance of it getting rescheduled.)
(One bonus pick: Wisconsin 27, Penn St. 14.)
Next week: Letters; Stories; Lehigh vs. Albany at home
In the Patriot League:
Duquesne at Fordham. Can Duquesne make it 3-0 versus the Patriot League (after beating Holy Cross and Georgetown)? Three times is not the charm. Fordham 20, Duquesne 14.
Georgetown at Colgate. Hoyas keep it surprisingly close, but Raiders ultimately win. Colgate 24, G'town 16.
Lafayette at Richmond. A shocker, with Richmond letting down and Lafayette bouncing back, but Richmond still pulls it out. Richmond 23, Lafayette 22.
Columbia at Bucknell. A close defensive game that Bucknell pulls out. Bucknell 17, Columbia 14.
In the Top 25:
UNH at Dartmouth. Shocker of the week. I don't think UNH will be able to keep up with Dartmouth's passing attack. Big Green outduels an exposed UNH in pass-happy game. Dartmouth 44, UNH 34.
James Madison at 1-A West Virgina. Memo to A-10: Rutgers and Mississippi St. are not national championship contenders. West Virginia is. WVa 63, JMU 9.
Furman at 1-A Pittsburgh. Furman keeps them close for 3 quarters, but Pitt pulls away in the end.. as long as they hold onto the ball. Pitt 31, Furman 21.
Delaware at UMass. A classic "battle of the desperate teams", UMass has more to lose by going 0-2 in divisional play than Delware does by losing to 2 ranked teams in September. That, and the fact that they have their new coach finally on the sideline, and they're at home. UMass 21, Delaware 20.
Montana St. at 1-A Colorado St. Tempting to take the upset, but the Bobcats haven't proven they can score points consistently. CSU 28, MSU 7.
Northern Colorado at Montana. NCU has played Maine, Idaho St., and now Montana in consecutive weeks. Picture that trio of games in November instead of Spetember! Montana looks for someone to pound after losing to Sam Houston St. last week, and NCU fits the bill. Montana 34, NCU 0.
Hampton at Morgan St. (in E. Rutherford, NJ). The Urban League Classic now features #20 ranked Hampton playing Morgan St. Can Morgan St. keep it close? I'll do one better and predict a Morgan St. victory. Hampton was helped immensely by 7 turnovers in their win against ranked Western Illinois last week, and I think the Pirates lose in a shootout. Morgan St. 45, Hampton 34.
Appalachian St. at Northwestern St. A battle that could mean an at-large playoff invite for the winner down the road. Both teams have great defenses. I thing NW St. gets one more turnover, and win the game at home. NW St. 13, App. St. 6.
Northeastern at Towson. I don't see this one being competitive under the lights in Baltimore. N'Eastern 35, Towson 3.
Sam Houston St. at SE Louisiana. I predict over 800 yards of passing for these gunning teams, and I predict SE Louisiana will capture their second scalp over a ranked opponent this year at home. SE Louisiana 41, Sam Houston St. 32.
Villanova at Penn. Most experts call this a laugher in favor of Villanova. Oh, how wrong they are. Penn will painfully make this clear tonight. Penn 24, Villanova 3.
Southern Utah at Stephen F. Austin. This game would be interesting in different circumstances, but with SUU playing their thrid straight tough road game, I don't see it today. SFA 31, SUU 14.
McNeese St. at Portland St. Another hunch: Portland St.'s balanced attack will cause McNeese St.'s defense problems, as they pull off an "upset". PSU 27, McNeese St. 14.
Final notes:
* On CN8 today there is a real feast of 1-AA football in the NJ/Philadelphia area, with Delaware/UMass at 1PM and Villanova/Penn at 6PM. If you have picture-in-picture, you can also put the Penn St./Wisconsin game on too - in the *smaller* screen, of course.
* It's a shame the Western Kentucky/Florida International (1-A) game was postponed due to the impending hurrincane (again) in Florida. It would have certainly been another 1-AA win over a 1-A. (Fat chance of it getting rescheduled.)
(One bonus pick: Wisconsin 27, Penn St. 14.)
Next week: Letters; Stories; Lehigh vs. Albany at home
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